Remote site systems and network latency

Configuration Manager 2007 can operate successfully in a wide variety of network environments. However, there are still some factors to consider in regards to planning the location of site systems. This is of particular importance for those that Site Component Manager watches, such as a management point or state migration point.

“Sites are typically configured so that the clients and site systems have fast connectivity with each other, usually local area network (LAN) speed.”

In the same document is a section on intra-site communications that covers the following.

“When Configuration Manager 2007 components that are within the site boundaries communicate with each other, they use either server message block (SMB), HTTP, or HTTPS, depending on various site configuration choices you make. Because all of these communications are unmanaged—that is, they happen at any time with no consideration for bandwidth consumption—it is beneficial to make sure these site elements have fast communication channels.”

One thing that we do not specifically mention is network latency. Our guidance operates under the assumption that part of a fast communication channel is not only high speed, but low latency as well. We recently had a customer report some issues in a high latency environment so we wanted to share how the symptoms can appear.

Attempts to install, alter, or even uninstall managed site systems (management points and PXE service points for example) in a high latency environment may fail. The key to diagnosing issues related to latency lies in reviewing the time stamps in the log files. If polling operations take several seconds to complete and later timeout then latency is likely too high. Here is an example taken from the sitecomp.log file of a site server where there was an attempt to uninstall a state migration point:

Notice the delays between operations. All of these are typically a second or two apart. Instead, we have 28 seconds, 11 seconds, and an eventual timeout a little over 30 minutes later. A network trace taken at the same time should illustrate lengthy delays between calls to check the status of the service. Ultimately, this is too much latency for successful management of a remote site system.

If improving network conditions is not possible in these scenarios, the next recourse is to put a new dedicated site on the same end of the high latency connection. This way intra-site communications can happen properly; the local segment should be low latency, and the remote connection uses the LAN Sender component between sites, which is much more tolerant of latency.

Join the conversation

Recent Posts from EMS Leaders

Everyone here in Redmond is wildly busy gearing up for Ignite next week — and I can’t remember a time I’ve been more excited to attend a tech conference. One of the reasons I’m so excited is that I have three hours set aside to do something that’s been on my to-do list for a very long time.... Read more

Howdy folks, A common request we get from our customers is to reduce the number of times users are prompted to sign into Azure AD. One way to reduce the frequency of prompts is to check the “Keep me signed in” checkbox on the sign-in flow, but our telemetry shows that usage of that checkbox is very low. But we know from talking to customers, that cutting down on the number of signin prompts is REALLY important. Nobody wants to have to signin to an app multiple times! So today I’m happy to share that we’re improving how “Keep me signed in” option is shown to users. We’re also adding intelligence to ensure users are prompted to remain signed in only when it’s safe to do so. First, as a quick refresher, here’s what the existing “Keep me signed in” experience is like. As you might guess, most users cruise right past the check box and never think twice.... Read more

Organizations are pushing forward in their digital transformations and we continue to see and hear more about what this shift means for IT. The scope of digital transformation goes beyond moving existing work to the cloud and enabling a more mobile workforce. It brings the opportunity to reimagine business from the ground up – from product offerings, to customer engagement strategies, to how to drive innovation and differentiate vs. competition. As a result, today more than ever, CIOs are being asked by their boards and other executives to weigh in on a growing number of business decisions. Almost half (46%) of CIOs in the State of the CIO survey report directly to their CEO, 61% have direct interaction with the board, and 76% are interfacing directly with customers.... Read more

Organizations are transforming how they operate in a digital world. This means seizing new opportunities quickly, reinventing business processes, and delivering greater value to customers. More important than ever are the strong and trusted relationships with the whole ecosystem in which an organization operates. This includes business partners, contractors, and of course customers. While business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) interactions may be different, sustaining both requires information security combined with intuitive user experiences.... Read more

As 2016 draws to a close, we would like to thank you for choosing Microsoft Enterprise Mobility + Security (EMS) to protect and secure your employees as you continue to digitally transform your organizations. More than 37,000 customers and over half of the Fortune 500 have now chosen EMS.... Read more